The 2020 presidential election is coming up this fall which is important because for some people the way some issues are handled are life and death . It’s an important year due to the current events. No matter if you are democratic, republican or independent it is important to know who both candidates are and what they stand for. 

It is important to know the basic ideas of what each candidate’s focus will be given the chance to be president. It is possible to get a good idea of what each party wants by reading each party’s party platform or for Trump the “Fighting for You”. Knowing which administration could be running the country can help you prepare for any possibility about the future. 

The Democratic candidate is Joe Biden and his vice president will be Kamala Harris. They pointed out their main priorities within the Democratic Party Platform on Democrats.org. For example, they will work on the economy to create new jobs and raise wages for all. They are also trying to help out working families by reforming the tax code.

Additionally, Americans remain split on the idea how to address the cost of healthcare. Biden said he will fight for affordable healthcare for everybody that will be able to protect Americans against COVID-19 or any possible virus like it in the future, as well as helping the country recover from the pandemic. 

The conversation about getting rid of systematic racism has grown over the past few months. Biden and his party will also be trying to uproot structural and systemic racism in our economy and our society and protect the rights of minorities who have been discriminated against “in too many ways and for too many generations.” The Democratic party wants to achieve equity and wrote, “Hate and its symbols have no home in America.”

Climate change has been an issue for a long time and the Democratic party says they will lead the world to fighting climate change. They will do this by rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement, protecting oceans and supporting the protection of species and wildlife habitats worldwide. 

The Democratic party says that they will try and make college more affordable for students and “relief crushing student debt.”  They will make public colleges tuition-free for student’s families who earn less than $125,000 a year. Biden and his party have made a very specific set of goals for their 2020 plans. 

The Republican candidate is Donald Trump and his vice president will be Mike Pence. They have chosen to not create a 2020 party platform but they do have a revised 2016 platform. A lot of things have changed since 2016 and Trump has recently released a new document of priorities. We can, however, look at a list of core priorities called “Fighting For You!”

In the “Fighting For You” document he claims he will help the economy by creating jobs and new small businesses. Trump also speaks about COVID-19, he plans to have a vaccine by the end of the year and restore things back to “normal” by 2021. He has said that he blames China for the virus and has planned to end America’s reliance on China.

Along with new ideas for healthcare, Trump plans to cut drug prices, end surprise billing, among other things. He will try to fix the issues with the government by passing congressional term limits. In light of the past few months he has said he will continue to support the police system and hire more law enforcement.

Immigration has also been a heavy debate and a large part of Trump’s campaign, the republican party has said it will prohibit companies from replacing U.S. citizens with “lower-cost” foreign workers. With that, new immigrants will have to be able to support themselves financially.

Another plan of his is to “innovate for the future” by establishing a permanent manned presence on the moon, send the first manned mission to Mars, and try to clean the Earth’s oceans.  

Lastly, Trump will continue to try to bring American troops back and maintain America’s military. Trump and his party have continued some of his plans into his potential second term, but have also brought in some new ideas. 

Knowing what each party wants is always a good thing as it can help you make a well-informed decision on who you would like to support. Some policies and plans could affect you or loved ones, so getting basic ideas of what each candidate wants could affect your vote or support. As the election comes up remember that it’s important to keep up with both parties not just one you support.